Seattle Mariners trying to fill out pitching staff

The Seattle Mariners’ April 8 home-opening face-off with the Los Angeles Angels is fast approaching, and the team still faces plenty of decisions as to who will man key positions throughout the regular season. Chief among the priorities for new manager Lloyd McClendon and the front office is filling out the pitching staff.

The final three spots of the rotation were question marks heading into spring training, but the situation became even more convoluted in the wake of injuries to No. 2 starter Hisashi Iwakuma (sprained finger) and 21-year-old super prospect Taijuan Walker (shoulder bursitis).

Of the candidates to make the M’s regular rotation, the top spring performer has to be 23-year-old righty Erasmo Ramirez. In 18.2 innings this spring, Ramirez is 3-0 with a 0.96 ERA, 0.91 WHIP and 14 strikeouts. While it’s unlikely that Ramirez will perform at that high a level all year, he has the look of a player who at least has the ability to be a serviceable member of a major-league rotation. Seattle fans can only hope that this turns out to be the case.

Randy Wolf, 37, is another man in the mix for a spot. A 15-year veteran with a wealth of big-league experience, Wolf has notched 132 career wins while posting a 4.20 ERA. However, he has had an uneven spring, giving up six home runs in 19 innings. Wolf should be capable of holding down the fort if necessary, but the M’s didn’t bring him in to be a long-term answer for the franchise.

Perhaps the most intriguing name to keep an eye on going forward is Cuban defector Roenis Elias. The 25-year-old lefty sported a 3.18 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP in 130 innings of work in Double-A Jackson last year, but has yet to throw a major-league pitch in his career. He was a non-roster minor league invitee and was not considered a serious candidate to make the roster this season. But Elias has performed well, going 3-0 with a 2.04 ERA and 1.13 WHIP so far this spring.

It would be a roll of the dice to toss Elias into a big-league rotation without any prior experience, but McClendon also doesn’t have a lot of options. Offseason acquisition Scott Baker — who came over from the Minnesota Twins in the hopes of making a bid for a rotation spot — has had a rough spring so far, sporting a 6.75 ERA in 12 innings pitched. [Updated 4:00 p.m.: Baker asked for and was granted his release according to MLB insider Chris Cotillo.]

Seattle also has 6-foot-7, 245 pound right-hander Blake Beavan, a 2007 first-round pick of the Texas Rangers. Beavan has a wealth of physical talent that he has yet to channel into consistent production, going 16-19 with a 4.61 ERA in 289 career innings and spending the majority of last season in the minors.

James Paxton seems to have locked up his spot in the rotation after a solid spring where he’s sported a 3.18 ERA and 12 strikeouts in 17 innings. Paxton’s performance is hugely important for the Seattle’s season hopes. With both Iwakuma and Walker set to return at full strength in the near future, a productive year out of the young and talented Paxton could help the Mariners make strides in defining the supporting cast for perennial ace and No. 1 starter Felix Hernandez.

Beyond Hernandez and Iwakuma, there isn’t a single established major-league starter vying for a spot in the Seattle rotation — with the exception of Wolf or Baker, neither of whom are big-time difference makers. The disparity between Seattle’s top two starters and the rest of the rotation is probably the biggest in baseball, making the personnel one of the many glaring issues the club faces as the season gets underway.

Who do you want to see fill out the M's rotation behind Hernandez and Iwakuma? (Choose three)